Formulating Scholarly Questions

Describe the top 3 ideas that emerged from your brainstorming process this week.
The three areas include:
a. Developmental psychology
b. Community psychology
c. Counselling psychology
 For each of your 3 ideas, discuss the type of research you might want to do in this
area.
Under developmental psychology, I would be interested in understanding the impact of
birth order on procrastination. I would want to know whether firstborns procrastinate less
compared to lastborns. The reason for pursuing this area is to understand the impact of birth
order on behavior among children.
Under community psychology, I would be interested in understanding the relationship
between career aspirations and subjective wellbeing among adolescents. I am interested in
adolescents of low-socioeconomic status in my community. I am interested in understanding the
impact that socio-economic status has on adolescents’ wellbeing and how this affects their career
dreams and ambitions. Do they think lowly of themselves and thus limit their dreams? This is an
issue that I would like to explore.
Under counselling psychology, I would be interested in the impact of body
dissatisfaction, self-concept, and gender among female university students in my community.
This is a topic that I have been thinking about for quite some time. In a society where the media

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has over-represented the ideal body sizes, I would want to study the impact of such exposures,
especially to those whose bodies do not fit in the idealized categories. My interest is in female
university students because female bodies are over-sexualized, and there is a possibility that the
impact is more on this gender than on the male counterparts.
Briefly identify the NCU support systems and resources that can help you to begin to
research in any of your 3 identified areas of interest.
NCU has availed systems and resources that I plan on using to research my area of interest. The
resources I plan on using include;
a. The Dissertation Center. The centre has a collection of resources that are useful when
conducting research. I will use this during the research process.
b. The Academic Success Center. One of the main services that I will utilize is the
individualized coaching sessions. I will need to hone my research skills, and I will need
tailored instruction and support to ensure that I get better. Also, the coaching is
individualized, and this will help ensure that I improve on any area in research that I
could be facing difficulties.
c. The library. The library has a collection of journal articles and other resources. I will
explore these resources to understand the research process better. I will also be able to
identify similar studies that have been conducted so that I can clearly identify the existing
research ap. Also, I will know areas that have been over explored and where there may be
no existing gaps.
d. A supportive faculty. I will consult you professor, you have been very supportive
throughout the course, and the feedback has been effective in helping me improve. I will
therefore, consult you for support and guidance.

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 Based on your research discussion, formulate 3 questions for your mentor that will
help you to know where to begin a research process (For example: How can I find
out if my research idea has already been done?)
The three questions are:

1. How can I measure procrastination in children?
2. How do I identify a literature review related to my area of study and one that is
   current?
3. Is it possible to have an area that has been sufficiently studied and so there are no
   existing gaps?